How to check a restoration company's reviews and complaints in Dallas

Reviews on Google and other sites are useful, but they are easy to misread. Use them to find patterns, then confirm what matters in official records.

• Sort by newest. A company can change owners, staff or subcontractors. Reviews from the last year say more than the all-time average.
• Read the one and two star reviews. Look for repeated themes such as no-shows, surprise charges, pressure to replace instead of repair, or warranty disputes. One angry review is noise. The same complaint five times is a pattern.
• Look for specifics. Useful reviews mention the job, the price, the part replaced or how a problem was handled. A burst of short five-star reviews posted within a few days is a reason for caution.
• Check that the review fits. Reviews that describe a different service, a different city or a different company name may not be about the business you are calling.
• Read the replies. A calm, specific response from the owner to a complaint is a good sign. Blame, threats or no response at all are not.
• Search the name with the word complaint. A search for the company name together with words such as complaint or scam can turn up problems that a star rating hides.

1. Mold work: TDLR. TDLR licenses mold assessment and mold remediation. Search the company and the individuals in the TDLR license search. TDLR's Consumer Mold Information Sheet says a licensed individual must carry a current license certificate with the license number on it, and that licensees must carry commercial general liability insurance of at least $1 million or be self-insured, so ask for proof.
2. Disciplinary orders. TDLR's mold FAQ says disciplinary orders are posted in its Administrative Orders Search for three years following the signed order.
3. Pipe repairs: plumbing license. If the job includes plumbing, check the plumber in the Texas plumbing license search.
4. Extraction and drying. For the water removal and drying part of a job, ask the company how it classifies the water, what it will remove and how it documents drying, and get that scope in writing.

The BBB notes that its profiles often include customer feedback, ratings and any reported complaints, and recommends getting detailed written estimates from several companies and comparing the scope of work. Read how the company answered each complaint, not only the rating.

Ask for references from recent jobs of the same type, such as a sewage backup or a slab leak, and ask whether the insurer accepted the documentation. A company that documents drying well should be able to show you how it did so on a past job, with personal details removed. Compare that with what its online reviews say about communication and final results.

The Texas Attorney General warns about door-to-door contractors after disasters, low-ball estimates and refusals to leave a contract overnight. Also be cautious about a company that cannot explain its scope in writing, or that asks for full payment before drying is documented.

Put the problem in writing to the company first, with photos and the invoice. If a mold licensee or an unlicensed person doing regulated mold work is involved, you can complain to TDLR; its FAQ says complaints must be filed within two years of the event. For deceptive practices, the Texas Attorney General accepts consumer complaints. Before you file, keep the contract, any moisture readings or drying records the company gave you, photos and every invoice together. For guidance on choosing a company in the first place, see our restoration page.

Water Damage Dallas Pros is an independent homeowner information website, not a contractor. We publish no reviews, star ratings, testimonials or customer counts, we never buy or write reviews, and we will not pay anyone for a review. The companies listed on this site are listed without payment and without a rating, so the list is not a review or a ranking. Check each one with the steps on this page.

The Federal Trade Commission's Trade Regulation Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials was published in the Federal Register on August 22, 2024 and took effect on October 21, 2024. It is codified at 16 CFR Part 465. Among other things, it prohibits fake or false reviews and testimonials (section 465.2), compensation or incentives for reviews that express a particular sentiment (section 465.4), undisclosed reviews by officers and managers (section 465.5), misrepresenting that a website a business controls provides independent reviews (section 465.6), and suppressing reviews through unfounded legal threats or intimidation (section 465.7).